Just like the previous years the course runs through all five boroughs of New York City.

It begins on Staten Island near the approach to the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. The runners cross the bridge.

After descending the bridge, the course winds through Brooklyn for approximately the next eleven miles. At 13.1 miles, runners cross the Pulaski Bridge, marking the halfway point of the race and the entrance into Long Island City, Queens. After about two and a half miles in Queens, runners cross the East River on the Queensboro Bridge into Manhattan. The climb up the bridge is considered one of the most difficult points in the marathon.

Reaching Manhattan after about 16 miles, the race proceeds north on First Avenue, then crosses briefly into The Bronx via the Willis Avenue Bridge for a mile before returning to Manhattan via the Madison Avenue Bridge. It then proceeds south through Harlem down Fifth Avenue and into Central Park. At the southern end of the park, the race proceeds across Central Park South for the last mile. At Columbus Circle, the race re-enters the park and finishes outside Tavern on the Green.